Toyota just showcased their sexy GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept II at the 39th Nürburgring 24-hour endurance race held near Nürburg, Germany. The GRMN II is an improvement on the first Toyota hybrid sports car, the Toyota MR2, which they showed at last year’s Tokyo Auto Salon, and is a car that’s meant to “embody the enjoyment of automobiles.” We think this very public showcase puts the GRMN one step closer to being Toyota’s first marketed hybrid sports car.

The GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept II was named as a tribute to Hiromu Naruse, a Toyota driver who lost his life last year driving a Lexus LFA near the Nürburgring race circuit. GRMN stands for GAZOO Racing tuned by Meister of Nürburgring — the latter refers to Naruse. The previous Toyota hybrid sports car, the Toyota MR2, had more of a racing body than the GRMN II and this new design puts it more in line with something you’d see zooming by you on the highway instead of zooming in front of you on a track.

The prospect of top-down driving in this low-riding, low-emissions auto is pretty exciting to us. With the news that Tesla is going to discontinue their electric Roadster in favor of focusing on their more practical Model S electric sedan, Toyota is primed to sweep up the market that the Roadster will leave behind. With its 3.5 liter V6 engine, 295 horsepower and 0-60 mph in six seconds capability, we could see the GRMN zooming into dealerships in the near future.